An investigation of the biblical theology of mission. The student will analyze three distinct but interrelated areas: The biblical and theological foundations of mission; the Kingdom of God as the theme of mission; and progressive revelation throughout salvation history. The student will be able to construct his/her own mission theological framework.

The Christian scriptures hold the key to the understanding and the praxis of God’s mission. This course examines issues related to the historical context of the biblical text, the role of the interpreter’s social context, and the location of missions in understanding the Bible and participating in the mission of God in today’s multi-cultural and multi-religious context.

Students will understand and evaluate various models for how the Church negotiates its position vis-à-vis those deemed outside the community. This course will utilize the methods of the social sciences, including, social-identity theory and social psychology, for the purposes of better understanding how the early Church addressed its own distinctives in diverse cultures and contexts. This will be done for the purpose of translating the earliest practices into the contemporary Church in its worldwide diversity. Student evaluation will include reading, lectures, discussion forums, an essay, an exam, and a service project.

Will focus on the relationship between ethics and mission in the early Church for the sake of the Church’s ongoing mission. Social scientific research, theories, and models will be utilized and evaluated in order to understand and categorize behavior towards those deemed outside an individual’s group identity. Structurally, the course will contain reading assignments, lectures, discussions, an essay, an exam, and a hands on service project.

Examines the New Testaments models of contextualization and bring them into theological conversation with the student’s lived experience of context. The student will evaluate how these Biblical accounts might offer a faithful pattern of missional engagement that can serve as a model for mission today.

A sociocultural, rhetorical, and historical analysis of the proclamation and witness of Jesus and the Apostles and its implication for message development in varous cultural contexts.  Students will analyze the structure and delivery of biblical proclamation in terms of its audience and intent in order to discern ways culture and context contribute to the formation of theological approaches to missional proclamation. Students will craft contemporary messages and approaches using New Testament models of proclamation and witness designed for an unreached or underserved group of people of their choosing.